After the Smoke Clears
by miley-avril
Summary: After the smoke clears and the dust settles, there is still much to be done. Damage needs to be controlled. Blame needs to be placed. Most importantly, one needs to meet his or her parents who are the same age as said person, and are Snow White and Prince Charming. Emma Swan thinks the purple smoke cloud monster can take its sweet, lovely time dissipating. Rated T for language.


**I REALIZE I HAVEN'T UPDATED MY OTHER STORIES IN A REALLY LONG TIME. SORRY. I JUST HAD TO GET THIS OUT OF MY SYSTEM. I ALSO CHANGED THE DIALOGUE AND CHAIN OF EVENTS A LITTLE BIT TO BETTER SUIT WHAT I'M TRYING TO CONVEY. REVIEWS MAKE MY DAY XD!**

**DO NOT OWN ONCE UPON A TIME OR ITS CHARACTERS. DARN.**

After the smoke clears and the dust settles, there is still much to be done. Damage needs to be controlled. Blame needs to be placed. Most importantly, one needs to meet his or her parents who are the same age as said person, and are Snow White and Prince Charming. Emma Swan thinks the purple smoke cloud monster can take its sweet, lovely time dissipating. She glances at her son, who's eagerly tugging at the sleeve of her red leather jacket.

"Come _on_, Emma. Let's go meet everybody!" Henry whines excitedly.

"Kid, you just died. Don't you think you should rest?" The blonde's nasally voice further proves how dire the situation was.

"Nope! I feel great."

"Henry…" She says, her voice stern in a motherly way she didn't even know could come out of her.

"Please." The boy looks up at her with puppy dog eyes, and she can't resist.

"Fine. Only cause I need to make sure everyone's okay." While Emma is concerned about Henry, she knows he's okay. On the forefront of her mind is the rapidly approaching and unwanted reunion with the parents who sent her away to save them. He reaches for her hand, intertwining them. For once, Emma allows herself to admit how right it feels. Henry waves at people he barely knows as they walk through the winding hallways of the hospital. She ignores their stares, hating the way they look at her as if she's some hero. The two step out onto the town square, where dozens of people hug their loved ones, tears streaming down their faces. Two in particular catch Emma's eye, and suddenly it feels like there's a rock in her stomach. Much to her dismay, Henry pulls her closer to them. Her _parents_.

"So, what do we do now?" She hears Ruby ask.

"Now." Mary Margaret –no, Snow White– says breathlessly. "Now I find my daughter." David nods in agreement. Emma can't even begin to think of the man as Prince Charming after his actions.

"Well, you found her." The blonde says coldly, emotionlessly. She's desperately trying to hide how hard her heart is constricting and how much she wants the warm embrace she knows is coming.

"Emma." Mary Margaret says her name like it's the most sacred thing. Then comes the bone crushing hug. "You saved us." She laughs through her tears. David joins in, caressing Emma's face.

"I… well… um…" The Sheriff stutters, not sure how to respond to something like that.

"She saved _all_ of us." David says, his eyes glowing with pride. This is too much, and Emma pulls back. Henry seems to pick up on her discomfort and comes to her rescue.

"Gramps?" He questions.

"I guess so, Henry." David shrugs, ruffling the boy's hair. Mary Margaret laughs, an angelic and joyous sound.

"Hey! You have to help!" Archie yells, trying to keep up with an angry mob. "Dr. Whale's leading them. They're going to kill Regina!" _Oh, shit_, Emma thinks.

"We should let them." David mumbles, morals forgotten in the face of avenging his family's pain.

"No." Mary Margaret says with authority. Emma's taken aback, having not expected her sweet, mild-mannered roommate to transform into the bold woman before her. "No matter what she did, Regina is still a human being."

"Please, you can't let her die. She's my mom, too." Henry pipes up, looking guilty for voicing his love for his adoptive mother.

"I promise, Kid." The words fly out of her mouth before the blonde can think them through. All she wants is to keep her son happy, no matter the cost. "Let's go." Surprisingly, the little group they'd formed grudgingly agrees, and they sprint off after Whale's group. Having just battled a dragon, watching her son die, and meeting her parents, this is the last thing Emma wants to do, but she made a promise to Henry and she isn't about to break it. They somehow manage to get to Regina in enough time to save her ass. Whale isn't happy about it, but figures having the whole Charming Family out to get him won't be good for his health, so he cooperates.

"You're blaming me, but you know who did this? Gold!" Regina spits. The four mull this over and decide to pay him a visit.

"Henry." Emma kneels down to her son's level. "Can you stay with Ruby for a little while? Mr. Gold's really dangerous. But you already know that." Henry opens his mouth to protests, then nods.

"Okay." He trudges over to the waitress. On the walk over to the pawn shop, Mary Margaret brushes her hand against Emma's shoulder. The blonde stops and turns around. David does the same.

"I want to talk." The brunette says, her eyes hopeful.

"I'm kinda busy." Emma responds. She doesn't mean to sound unsympathetic or nasty, but there _are_ more important things at hand and to be honest, she doesn't feel like talking.

"Well I do. I've waited twenty eight years, and I'm not waiting any longer." The strength in Mary Margaret's voice is really starting to freak Emma out.

"Okay." The blonde gives in. "What do you want to talk about?"

"So many things, I don't even know where to start."

"How about something easy." Emma suggests.

"I'm sure you have a lot of questions." Mary Margaret's eyes light up. "So ask away."

"Not really." Emma shrugs. David looks down, trying to hide his disappointment. He wants to get to know his daughter so badly it hurts.

"Then can I ask one?" The brunette asks hesitantly, sounding less sure of herself, more like the Mary Margaret Emma knows. That she can deal with.

"Go ahead." She nods.

"How are you doing?"

"_Really_? We have to talk about feelings right now?" Emma reigns in the sudden anger. She clenches her fists.

"You're my daughter whether you like it or not, and I have to make sure you're okay." Mary Margaret offers her an apologetic smile. "I know you hate this kind of stuff, but it's my job. It's more than that. It's what I _want_ to do." David shifts uncomfortably from foot to foot. He feels out of place.

"I'm fine." Emma says a little too quickly. Mary Margaret gives her a look, like the one the blonde gave Henry at the hospital to a tee. "I've had a rough day, okay? I fought a dragon," she ignores her parents' shocked gasps, "watched my son die and come back to life, and I met you guys. No offense. It's a lot to take in, but I'm okay. I promise." She smiles.

"We know this isn't easy, Emma, and we're so incredibly proud of you. Everything's going to be fine, it'll just take time. Once the smoke clears it'll all seem normal." The brunette says.

"Well," Emma bites her lip, "one thing would make me feel a little better."

"What?" David inquires.

"Kicking Gold's ass."

"Okay." He and Mary Margaret chuckle. "I think we can let you do that."

**THIS THING TOOK THE REIGNS AFTER THE FIRST 800 WORDS. JUST THOUGHT YOU SHOULD KNOW IN CASE IT SEEMS A LITTLE… DIFFERENT. I GUESS THAT'S THE WORD. *SHRUGS*. ANYWAY, I HOPE YOU LIKED IT!**


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